Hey there Brooke,
Welcome to planDisney and thanks so much for your question! You're asking about one of my favorite parts of any trip to the Disneyland Resort - food!
When making dining reservations,
the Disneyland Resort does require a credit card, which is used as a placeholder. Your credit card won't be charged before you dine unless you either miss your reservation or do not cancel within the cancellation period.
Each restaurant of the Disneyland Resort maintains its own cancellation policy, so I always recommend - especially if you're unsure if you'll want to end up sticking with your reservation - that you check the restaurant's page on the
Disneyland Resort website for this policy.
If you decide not to make dining reservations - Hakuna Matata, Brooke! There are still plenty of dining options! For many dining locations around the parks, you can utilize
Mobile Food & Beverage Ordering directly from the
Disneyland Resort mobile app - this is my favorite way to order when I visit. With this option, your mobile app will tell you when your food is ready to be picked up and which window at your dining location to pick it up from.
Additionally, even if you don't see any available dining reservations for that one special restaurant you had your eye on - there is still a good chance you can join the
Mobile Dine Walk-Up Line when you arrive in the parks! For this, keep an eye on the restaurant's page in the mobile app to see if there is an option to join this queue.
However, some of my favorite dining spots around the parks don't even offer dining reservations! In Disneyland Park, I love grabbing a breakfast burrito from
Galactic Grill in Tomorrowland or a burger from
Hungry Bear Restaurant. In Disney California Adventure Park, my two favorite places to eat are
Pym Test Kitchen (for breakfast, lunch or dinner!) and
Flo's V8 Cafe. You will not go hungry on your trip, I promise you that!
Thank you again for your question, Brooke! I hope you have a fantastic visit to the Happiest Place on Earth.
Have a Magical Day,
Greg